MIKE CLARKE/AFP/Getty Images Is email dying? Or is it just killing you? Email – the much hailed and heralded productivity tool – may be doing just the opposite of what it’s meant for: maximizing productivity. Email was meant to be a more efficient way to communicate, enabling faster channels of communication and giving users the ability to organize and prioritize communication as it came into their inbox.

Part of the new series “Building Your Happiest and Best Career” Photo Courtesy: iStock Being a researcher at heart, I love to explore key trends that reflect the deepest challenges professionals face. And if I can, I like to distill down to the bare essentials the vital lessons that successful professionals and career changers have gleaned from their respective journeys.

Of course you want to be a great employee, to sail through your goals and make your managers as well as your customers happy. Of course you want to be a wonderful teammate — that can only be good for your own state of mind and that of  your teammates. It’s very easy to forget that you can go too far in the pursuit of your “perfect employee” badge.

Dear Liz, Where is a reasonable cut-off when you’re interviewing with a company and they ask you to work for free? I applied for a cool job at a startup that is living on VC money and they’re very cheap. I knew that going in but I also know that what I do (business development) is exactly what they need. I started reaching out to them in July and now I’ve met most of the leadership team and the CEO.

Dear Liz, I have a dilemma. I’m the new HR Director at an up-and-coming firm that is hiring like crazy. Several of our department managers are very keen on “passive” candidates. They want me to source people who work for other companies in town, and reach out  to those people about opportunities in our firm. I’m in an awkward situation. I’ve been an HR leader in this city for over twenty years, and I know many of the HR managers in this region well.

We’ve all seen them. Emotionally flat presentations. Emotionally devoid corporate mission, vision, and value statements that are simply wall art. They’re not memorable. And even if the team has been asked to memorize them, even recite them, but if you ask what they mean, you’ll get blank stares. Why? There’s no emotion. There’s no story.

Dear Liz, I got so lucky this summer in several ways. I got assigned to a new client that was looking for strategic alternatives, and they found a great one. They got bought just before Labor Day. I’ve been working with them since May first, and we’ve had a lot of adventures together during that time! It is a great partnership. The client company was acquired, and they are now a division of a larger company.

Shutterstock There’s a good chance you’ve worked for a narcissist at one time or another. Perhaps you had a boss who fired anyone at the first hint of dissension. Or maybe you’ve worked alongside someone whose main goal was to gain admiration from others. Whether it’s a politician or a CEO, it’s common to see narcissists in leadership positions. But just because they get elected or promoted doesn’t necessarily mean they’re the best people for the job.

Shutterstock We’ve all heard that it’s important to leave a job on good terms, but we can easily forget what those “good terms” require. When you’ve given notice at your job because you have a better job to go to, caution can fly out the window. It’s an exciting time, and your happiness about your new opportunity can cloud your judgment.

When you break down the costs of rent, phone, healthcare and income; some cities are just more economical for freelance workers. (image credit: Shutterstock) When you are a freelance worker, it’s important to always keep an eye on your costs.